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Archiver > BANAT > 2006-03 > 1142750194


From: Teddy Forsyth <>
Subject: Familienbuch Tiebswetter_Translation
Date: Sat, 18 Mar 2006 22:36:34 -0800 (PST)
In-Reply-To: <448058399@web.de>


--- Lothar Renard wrote on 17 Mar 2006:
...
The family book for Tomnatic, compiled by me and
published in Germany, was violently criticized by
"Genealogy RO Group", like it happened with other
family books before. Evidently, there is an intention
to persuade the book's readers that it is not worth to
buy this book, because it is not prepared
scientifically and contains mainly incomplete and
unreliable information.
But, the reliability of "Genealogy RO Group" suffers
as well, because behind the "Group's" massive
criticism there is a considerable financial interest.
Each family book for Banat prepared by a German author
and sold in USA represents for the "Group" a
considerable financial loss, because it cannot sell
its own genealogical information.
The "Group's" strategy is crystal clear (to use an
expression of this "Group"): First, they violently
criticize the family book for arousing the impression
that the book is worthless. Then, mistakes in the book
are highlighted through the research results of other
family books (aren't they worthless, too?) and then,
if they can also attack the family book's author, the
better. This strategy should be clarified through the
example of the Tomnatic family book, whose author I
am: The "Group" bought the family book anonymously. I
sold no books to Romania. Also anonymous is the
"Group's" negative criticism. Articles are not signed
with names. "Genealogy RO Group" disparages
unscientific work, mistakes and lack of information.
They say I don't have any knowledge of Latin, exactly
like they blamed other authors for not having
knowledge of Hungarian. Would "Genealogy RO Group"
have read the foreword to my family book (evidently,
the "Group" has no knowledge of German), they would
have seen that in the foreword to the book I explained
that it is not a scientific work. That it doesn't
claim to be accurate and complete and that it only
intends to offer a first hint for the existence of
ancestors. It comes to the question, why family books
authors, who were not born in Hungary or Romania,
should know the language of these countries?
I don't want to enter here into details on the
"Group's" criticism.
I know that early genealogical information on Tomnatic
are to be found in the church books of Sannicolau Mare
and that I could have found further genealogical
information in other family books (wow...). It was not
my intention to research entire Banat or to buy all
Banat family books and to compare them with my
information, but only the Tomnatic church books! In
the foreword to my book, I highlighted that the book
only gives a first hint on the existence of ancestors
and that interested readers should have the pleasure
and happiness to research their ancestors on their
own. Furthermore, the reliability of my family book
(or mine?) is discredited by quoting a French family
investigator, who complained on the Internet
(Banat-Mailing-List), his contribution to the Tomnatic
family book (genealogical research in Lotharingia) was
not mentioned under his name. The "Group" also
attached excerpts from the Banat-Mailing-List! The
author of the Tomnatic family book is immediately
blamed for "unethical behavior", while with a simple
question on me, they would have found out that the
French researcher was not the only person affected by
mistake, but a series of other family investigators.
Unfortunately, a page has been left out at the book's
editing. The map has been glued in the book instead. I
should have attached this page to the book. Sorry! I
apologized in writing to the French researcher and to
all other family investigators affected by this
mistake and promised to publish the next volume with
names and thanking. I was expecting at least the
French family investigator to publish my excuses,
where he expressed his complaint (Banat-Mailing-List).
I agree that the attached CD is of bad quality. Who
once saw the hardcopies of the microfilms over 60
years old (evidently, "Genealogy RO Group" didn't see
them), knows what I am talking about. You can see
almost nothing on many copies, because the films are
overexposed. The CD was attached to the family book
free of charge. Who wants to use it, can do this. Who
doesn't like it, can throw it away! Of course, they
did not forget to criticize that I often mention the
book of the smith Treffil as information source. Even
if "Genealogy RO Group" doesn't like this book,
because information contained in it can be downloaded
from the Internet free of charge, we are glad that
this book exists, as incomplete as it is! After all
black clouds thrown by "Genealogy RO Group" over the
family books, the reader is really lucky to find on
the same page a Link to the happy and healthy world of
"Genealogy RO Group". There, the Romanian citizen, Mr.
S. (I am not the only one knowing the name), from
Timisoara, shows to the world, how the "Group" works
"scientifically".
Dear "Genealogy RO Group", dear Mr. S.: evidently,
Americans buy family books from Germany quite gladly.
At least, it seams that the Tomnatic family book is a
bestseller, because in approx. 2 months I sold over
100 copies in USA. The authors of family books are
people, who during the day do their jobs and dedicate
their nights to their hobby, the family investigation.
Hardly legible church books are studied for hours with
enthusiasm and pleasure. However, lots of family books
are not published, because their authors don't have
the necessary financial means. Thus, valuable
knowledge stays in drawers, hidden to the world. And
those authors, who assume the risk to publish their
family books, are glad if sales cover the printing
costs. The though that other people have access to the
results of their work puts the financial risk in the
background!Dear Mr. S.! We should let each other to
live. The German authors of family books do not intend
to destroy your living bases in Timisoara by selling
family books in USA. The books are mainly addressed to
the German public and they are written in German.We
are honored and glad that people in USA are interested
in our work and buy our books!!! We work for the same
purpose, ancestors' research! In memory of our
ancestors we should respect each other's work and
leave the results of our research to the next
generations. At least, I saw this as my obligation, as
I published the Tomnatic Family book.
> Lothar Renard
> Autor des Familienbuchs Triebswetter


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